With Post 9/11 veteran unemployment hovering near nine percent and the services preparing to drastically cut forces, Australian mining companies have stepped up to grab some of that labor for their short staffed operations down under.

Seth Robson at Stars and Stripes reports the mines are looking for everything from plumbers and electricians, to heavy-equipment operators and project managers with pay ranging from $65K to 200K to start.

Australia would be happy to open its arms to U.S. veterans, Kim Beazley, Australian ambassador to the U.S., said in comments posted by the Australian immigration department. “In Australia, we have a culture of assuming that men and women who have been through the defense forces arrive in the broader community with very great skills discipline and motivation and, therefore, we assume that a similar atmosphere surrounds those who are veterans of American armed services,” he said.

The immigration department has posted interviews with U.S. soldiers considering a move Down Under on its website. “The majority of skilled migrants end up taking out citizenship, and we welcome that,” Sandi Logan, a spokesman for the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship said. “We are not a nation that is reliant on guest workers. When people come to build Australia, we invite them to become part of the nation.”

Australian headhunters are looking for new hires at job fairs throughout the US, but Robson mentions Detroit and Houston specifically and that 400 to 500 positions need to be filled immediately.